Due to the COVID-19 public health emergency, Educational Testing Service (ETS) and other certification assessment companies have closed testing centers nationwide. These closures will affect the ability of some prospective educators to complete previously scheduled certification assessments and to register for future test administrations.
 
To assist prospective educators impacted by the closure of testing centers, the South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) will issue a Provisional certificate for the 2020-21 school year to eligible candidates. The purpose of the Provisional certificate is to provide a one-year, temporary certificate option for an individual who has successfully completed all requirements of a state-approved educator preparation program with the exception of one or more certification assessments required by the State Board of Education (SBE).
 
The employing South Carolina public school district must request the issuance of a Provisional certificate for an eligible candidate.
 
To qualify for a Provisional certificate, the applicant must have the following documentation on file with the South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE):

1. Application for certification and processing fee.
2. Official transcript(s) documenting conferral of an earned bachelor’s degree or higher and successful completion of an educator preparation program that is state-approved for initial certification. The applicant must have completed the approved program at an institution accredited for general collegiate purposes by a regional accreditation association or at an institution with programs approved for teacher education by a national accreditation association with which the SCDE has a partnership agreement.
3. Fingerprint-based criminal history background reports from the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
   An eligible applicant who has prior arrests and/or convictions must undergo a review and be approved by the SBE before the SCDE will issue an educator certificate. Background checks from other states or agencies are not transferable to South Carolina. Criminal history reports are valid for a period of eighteen months; an applicant who does not meet requirements for issuance of an educator certificate within the eighteen-month validity period must repeat the fingerprint-based clearance process.
4. Program verification/certification recommendation form. The education dean or that individual’s designee at the college or university must sign the verification form documenting the applicant’s successful completion of all requirements of the educator preparation program, except for one or more certification exams.
5. Request for issuance of the Provisional certificate by the employing South Carolina public school district’s personnel administrator or designee.

If qualifying scores on the required subject area and pedagogy assessments are submitted during the validity period of the Provisional certificate, the SCDE will convert the Provisional credential to a standard Initial certificate.

The Provisional certificate may be extended for the 2021-22 academic year at the request of the employing school district so long as the educator has attempted one or more of the assessments required for certification.

While employed on a Provisional certificate, an educator is eligible to participate in the district’s induction program and formative evaluation process. However, an educator employed on a Provisional certificate is not eligible to participate in a summative evaluation process.

The Provisional certificate will not be issued for school psychologists, speech language pathologists, and school/district leaders. Individuals seeking certification in leadership and administrative fields may be eligible for a certification permit.